stevenpiziks (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
stevenpiziks) wrote2023-07-27 09:20 pm
stevenpiziks) wrote2023-07-27 09:20 pm
Darwin and the Birthday
Today is Darwin's birthday. He didn't want to do any kind of big celebration, but I persevered. It turned ... interesting.
While the cleaning crew was going over the house this afternoon, I suggested we get out of their way and go out to lunch. We decided to look for a place on Ann Arbor's west side. But when we got there, we discovered the entire area was without power due to last night's storm. All the restaurants were closed.
Darwin noticed we were on Dexter Road, so he said, "Let's go to Dexter. I've never been there."
So we zipped up the road to Dexter. It turned out Dexter had power, but their downtown was in the grip of some awful road construction, with traffic backed way, way up. We happened on a restaurant (the Fillmore) right at beginning of the long backup, so we decided to eat there. The weather was lovely, and they offered outdoor seating. The ambiance was very nice, but the food was ... meh. Especially for what they were charging.
Originally we'd wanted to explore downtown Dexter, but there was no way we wanted to deal with the awful, awful traffic snarl, so we went back home. A disappointment, but a first-world one, so we weren't bothered.
At home, I assembled The Cake.
When I asked Darwin what kind of birthday cake he wanted ("Just get one from Kroger or something." "Are you telling me NOT to bake you a birthday cake? ME?" "Oh, right. Uh ... chocolate cake?" "Boring! How about a Boston cream pie?" "Oooooo! I didn't know you could make one of those at home!"), I got to work the day before, in case things didn't work out right.
Actually, Boston cream pie is pretty easy. It's just a butter cake with the middle cut out and replaced with simple custard. The REAL challenge lay in not making a full-sized cake. With only two of us, a full cake would go mostly uneaten. What to do?
I rooted through the cupboards and found my ramekins--small bowls that can be used for baking. These should work! I made enough cake batter for a single layer, which would be more than enough, but I wanted to do a test cake. If it didn't work, I'd need the batter for a second try. I poured and baked two little cakes, watching carefully, since the recipe's baking time was for a 9" metal cake pan, and these were 4" glass ramekins.
The cakes came out perfectly! I had figured on making a second set, but realized I didn't need to. Yay! In the meantime, I made the custard (custard also looks more difficult than it is) and put it and the little cakes in the fridge overnight.
Today, I made some chocolate glaze (also easier than you think), cut the center out of one layer, and filled the hole with custard. Plopped the top layer on and smoothed glaze over the whole thing. Ta da! A tiny, two-person birthday cake!
I put one candle on it, and Darwin put up with "The Birthday Song." He pronounced the cake wonderful and rich. He also appreciated his present--a pair of house moccasins. His old ones are wearing out. When you're a grownup, you like this kind of present!
And so he's a year older.
While the cleaning crew was going over the house this afternoon, I suggested we get out of their way and go out to lunch. We decided to look for a place on Ann Arbor's west side. But when we got there, we discovered the entire area was without power due to last night's storm. All the restaurants were closed.
Darwin noticed we were on Dexter Road, so he said, "Let's go to Dexter. I've never been there."
So we zipped up the road to Dexter. It turned out Dexter had power, but their downtown was in the grip of some awful road construction, with traffic backed way, way up. We happened on a restaurant (the Fillmore) right at beginning of the long backup, so we decided to eat there. The weather was lovely, and they offered outdoor seating. The ambiance was very nice, but the food was ... meh. Especially for what they were charging.
Originally we'd wanted to explore downtown Dexter, but there was no way we wanted to deal with the awful, awful traffic snarl, so we went back home. A disappointment, but a first-world one, so we weren't bothered.
At home, I assembled The Cake.
When I asked Darwin what kind of birthday cake he wanted ("Just get one from Kroger or something." "Are you telling me NOT to bake you a birthday cake? ME?" "Oh, right. Uh ... chocolate cake?" "Boring! How about a Boston cream pie?" "Oooooo! I didn't know you could make one of those at home!"), I got to work the day before, in case things didn't work out right.
Actually, Boston cream pie is pretty easy. It's just a butter cake with the middle cut out and replaced with simple custard. The REAL challenge lay in not making a full-sized cake. With only two of us, a full cake would go mostly uneaten. What to do?
I rooted through the cupboards and found my ramekins--small bowls that can be used for baking. These should work! I made enough cake batter for a single layer, which would be more than enough, but I wanted to do a test cake. If it didn't work, I'd need the batter for a second try. I poured and baked two little cakes, watching carefully, since the recipe's baking time was for a 9" metal cake pan, and these were 4" glass ramekins.
The cakes came out perfectly! I had figured on making a second set, but realized I didn't need to. Yay! In the meantime, I made the custard (custard also looks more difficult than it is) and put it and the little cakes in the fridge overnight.
Today, I made some chocolate glaze (also easier than you think), cut the center out of one layer, and filled the hole with custard. Plopped the top layer on and smoothed glaze over the whole thing. Ta da! A tiny, two-person birthday cake!
I put one candle on it, and Darwin put up with "The Birthday Song." He pronounced the cake wonderful and rich. He also appreciated his present--a pair of house moccasins. His old ones are wearing out. When you're a grownup, you like this kind of present!
And so he's a year older.